Tickled Pink

Spent the morning shovelling compost and drinking coffee with my allotment buddy. There is nothing nicer than sitting down, glowing slightly - ladies dont perspire - and surveying the land. It's looking good. She had planted the onions yesterday but called to say she was sure they were too close together and could I come check. She is new to this, I love her enthusiasm and concern. They were fine of course. We have discovered an old compost heap on the plot which was previously covered in bracken. The soil is magnificent, it runs through your fingers like sand on a warm day. It will feed the babies no end, what a find.

After a quick trip to the hospital physio with my boy (docs Oct, hopital x-ray Dec, physio Mar - great timescale), she suggested my boy had weak quads and nothing else. Beggars belief. The things she checked for and missed. Anyway, thank goodness we have found our own trustworthy, fully qualified sports physio. She was a student with no-one else consulting. Who knows what the Mr & Mr Cs plan to do with the already stretched NHS.

Moving on, back into the garden for yet more coffee and a wander. Spring is sprunging all over and you can't help but feel lifted by it. This is my Spiraea Japonica Gold Flame. It's just starting to sprout shoots. I tried the spot metering again and I love the blurring effect it has. Such a rich colour just now. It is a truly outstanding variety with vibrant red new shoots in February, changing to compact, red-tipped golden leaves. Masses of pink flowers open in June. Easy to grow and completely hardy, this plant can be grown almost anywhere, from large tubs to mixed borders. No I didn't just paste that in from a website, I knew it already.